Hydroformed tubular frame members are now being utilized in the production of automotive frames. The hydroforming process starts with a standard tubular stock member that is placed into a form or die shaped to correspond to the particular member to be formed. A liquid is then introduced into the interior of the tubular stock and pressurized until the tubular stock expands to assume the shape defined by the configured form. The expanded and re-shaped tubular stock now has a substantially different shape. By forming cutouts and other access openings into the re-shaped tubular member, spot-welding electrodes can gain access to opposing adjacent sides to create a weld bond between juxtaposed members. In this manner, a frame, as an example, for an automobile can be created using in large part hydroformed tubular members.
The closed section of a hydroformed frame member can increase the strength of the automotive frame. Thus, the use of hydroformed members is highly desirable in the production of the frame for the roof. The use of hydroformed members as the roof side rail, for example, can improve roof strength as compared to previously used spot-welded, stamped open frame sections, such as is depicted in FIGS. 1 and 2. The hydroformed roof side rails will have constant peripheries, which is a limitation to the change of the cross-section of the roof side rail in either size or geometry. The limited ability to change cross-section creates a challenge in the mounting of the grab handle and the curtain air bag as the hydroformed roof side rail does not provide the same mounting surfaces for attachment of the grab handle and the curtain air bag as does the stamped and welded conventional roof side rail structure.
The grab handle has become a standard feature of passenger vehicles, particularly in sport utility vehicles and pick-up trucks, while the curtain side air bag has become a popular option that is frequently selected in the purchase of an automobile. Grab handles are typically attached directly to the roof side rail, while the curtain side air bags are also attached to the roof side rail at a location near to the grab handle attachment, through respective brackets, as is reflected in FIG. 1 of the drawings. Traditional known roof rail structure is formed from two stamped components that are welded together to form the roof side rail. The outer panel is designed to incorporate the grab handle support, while the inner panel is designed to mount the air bag bracket at the desired location, see FIGS. 1 and 2 of the drawings. The hydroformed roof side rail cannot directly provide the surfaces for mounting the grab handle and curtain air bag brackets because of the constraint of length of line in the formation of the hydroformed roof side rail member.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,364,343, granted to Gary Slota, et al on Apr. 2, 2002, discloses a bracket that is connectable to a roof side rail to mount the side curtain air bag and the grab handle at the same location. The grab handle is simply screwed to the bracket through connectors. The side curtain air bag is supported by the bracket beneath the grab handle. Similarly, U.S. Pat. No. 6,736,421, issued to Thomas Blake, et al on May 18, 2004, and U.S. Pat. No. 7,100,939, issued to Thomas Blake, et al on Sep. 5, 2006, teach a bracket that is affixed to the roof side rail to be utilized in mounting a side curtain air bag and the grab handle at the same location. In the Blake patents, the grab handle is attached through mounting brackets mounted on the air curtain bracket.
A bracket attached to the stamped, conventional roof side rail for housing a side curtain air bag has one side of the grab handle connected to the remote end of the bracket in U.S. Patent Publication No. 2004/0256843, published on Dec. 23, 2004. In U.S. Patent Publication No. 2007/005220, published on Mar. 8, 2007, a module containing the side curtain air bag, the grab handle and cover plates is fastened to the roof side rail to provide a common mounting structure for both the side curtain air bag and the grab handle.
Accordingly, it would be desirable to provide a mounting bracket that can accommodate the structure shortcomings of a hydroformed roof side rail to supply the mounting surfaces that would correspond to the conventional mounting surfaces of traditional stamped and welded roof side rails for the mounting of the grab handle and the side curtain air bag at the conventional locations with the curtain air bag being offset from the mounts for the grab handle.